This Friday kicks off Allegheny’s annual Springfest celebration, sponsored by the Major Events Committee (MEC) in a collaborated effort by Allegheny Student Government (ASG) and Gator Activities Programming (GAP).
This year’s theme will be “Las Vegas: What Happens at Springfest Stays at Springfest.”
On Friday night, Grounds For Change will serve up summery drinks for students to enjoy in a laid–back atmosphere while they listen to Chalk Dinosaur, an indie band from Pittsburgh that will perform from 9 to 10:30 p.m.
On Saturday, “CC Casino” will be open in the Campus Center lobby from noon to 3 p.m. Students will participate in such activities as blackjack, Texas Hold ‘Em, and slots in order to win raffle tickets.
Among the bigger prizes will be a flat–screen TV, an iPod Touch, and a Wii, to name a few. However, there will be many other smaller prizes, so students should have a lot of chances to win.
Elvis will be in the building, the campus center, that is, Saturday to “marry” people off and motivate students to keep playing for raffle tickets.
Airbrush tattoos and Springfest T–shirts will be featured throughout the afternoon as well.
“The T–shirts are super awesome this year,” said Rachel Higgins ’10, GAP member.
On Saturday night, at 10 p.m. showing of “The Hangover” will take place in Shafer Auditorium, which will give students a chance to unwind after a busy weekend full of activities.
“This year the MEC has worked very hard on making Springfest a success,” said Aubrey Green ’12, assistant director of concerts and special events.
“This is the first Springfest being planned with the MEC committee comprised of GAP and ASG members and the planning has gone really well,” Higgins added. “We were able to bounce ideas off of each other and plan an exciting day of activities for students.”
Most Allegheny students seem to be just as excited about this weekend.
“I came during Springfest on my tour last year and saw moon bounces outside of Brooks,” said Steph David ’13. “It all seemed like so much fun. I’m really excited.”
Other students are confused about the date that was chosen for Springfest this year, which is earlier in the season than usual.
Another common concern regarding the date is its interference with this weekend’s choral concert.
“I’m a little disappointed about the date,” said Danae Binder, ‘13. “I’m in 4 out of the 5 choirs.”
Higgins explained the reasoning behind the choice of an earlier date:
“Springfest was scheduled by looking at the academic calendar and was chosen by taking into consideration other scheduled campus events and religious holidays,” Higgins said. “This is a new process and is how major college events will be scheduled from now on.”
